Sewing machine



Jam 14, 1936. I M MCCANN f 2,027,742

SEWING MACHINE Filed July 26, 1930 5 SheetsSheet. l

' J n- 14, 1936-. i M. MCCANN 2,027,742

SEWING MACHINE Filed July 26, 19 30 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Jan. 14, 1936. McCANN SEWING MACHINE Filed July'26, 1930 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 atented Jan. 14, 1936 SEG MAQHINE Michael McCann, St. Albans, N. Y., assignor, by

mesne assignments, to The Singer Manufacturing Company, Elizabethport, N. 5., a corporation of New Jersey Application July 26, 1930, Serial No. 4170,861

12 Claims.

This invention relates to sewing machines and while certain features of the invention may find rather general application to such machines, certain others are of particular utility in machines wherein the work and the needle are vibrated relatively laterally of the needle 4 stitching path during the stitching operation such, for example, as machines for sewing on buttons and for binding fabric or strand mate- 1o rial as for tea bag wrapping, wire binding, button shanking, or the like.

One feature of the invention relates to means for holding the thread extending from the needle taut during the sewing so as to be controlled by the relative motion of the work and needle so that it is laid smoothly and uniformly on the work.

A further feature relates to means by which the starting end of the thread may be grasped before this holding means takes effect.

A further feature of this invention relates to means for increasing the possible amplitude of relative lateral vibration of the work and needle to accommodate large diameter bundles or groups of strands or fabric or for greater sewing hole spacing than can be successfully handled within the limits of motion of the usual button sewing or jog stitch machine mechanisms.

Further features relate to means for controlling the starting end of the thread, and when used for winding or wrapping, to means for covering this end so that it does not show in the finished work.

Still further features relate to holders for certain types of work.

For a more complete understanding of this invention, reference may be had to the accompanying drawings in which Figure l is a sicle elevation of a 'wire binding machine embodying the subject matter of this invention, the machine being shown as in one position during the sewing operation.

Figure 2 is a horizontal section on line 2-2 of Figure 1 showing the needle and work holder at one limit of their relative lateral movement.

Figure 3 is a view similar to a portion of Figure 2 but showing the needle and work holder at their other limits of lateral motion.

Figures iris a section on line li of Figure 1,

Figure 5 is a view to a larger scale similar to a portion of Figure 4 and showing a thread tension in operative condition.

Figure 6 is a detail section on line 66 of Figure 5.

Figures 7 and 8 are front end elevations of the machine showing the work holder depressed and elevated, respectively.

Figure 8a is a perspective view of the work 60 holder clamping jaws.

Figure 9 is a detail section on line il-9 of Figure 1.

Figure 10 is a section on line lit-4t of Figure 9.

Figures 11 and 12 are fragmentary perspec- 5 tives of the work in different stages of the machine operation.

Figure 13 is a side elevation of the machine in stopped position partly broken away and with parts omitted and showing a different form of work holder.

Figures 14 and 15 are detail sections on lines l ll 5 and l5-l5, respectively, of Figure 13.

Figure 16 is a fragmentary perspective of the tension release mechanism.

Figure 17 is a section to a larger scale on line ll-ll of Figure 13.

Figure 18 is a section on line iii-it of Figure 17.

Referring to the drawings, at l is shown the m base of a sewing machine of a well known type for securing buttons with a single thread chain stitch, having a post '2 upstanding from its rear end merging with a forwardly extending arm 3 having a sewing head Q at its forward 5 end. At 5 is indicated a needle bar to the lower end of which a needle 6 having an eye l is secured. This needle bar is slidably supported near its upper end in a sleeve t pivoted at 9 in the sewing head for lateral vibration as well as 30 endwise reciprocatory movement. The endwise reciprocatory movement is produced from a shaft ill which-has a crank arm H at its forward end pivotally connected through a link G2 with a collar l3 secured to the needle bar 5. 35 The lateral motion of the needle bar is effected through a lever l5 adjustably fulcrumed at it, the forward end of this lever having a sleeve ll through which the needle bar is slidably mounted. The rear end of the lever 05 is provided 40 with a cam follower M riding in a cam groove it (see Figure 4) in a cam 99 fixed to a vertical shaft 2t. 7

Beneath the needle bar the base i is provided with a work table 25 beneath which is positioned a looper such. as 26 carried by a looper shaft 27!. The looper is driven in suitable timed relation to the shaft it by any suitable means as is well known in the art.

Beneath the arm 3 is positioned a work holder shown generally at 30. In the form shown in Figures 1 to 8 this work holder comprises a pair of spaced jaws 3i pivoted as at 32 to the under face of a carrier bar 33. At their forward ends these jaw members 3! are bent downwardly and forwardly and each is provided with horizontally spaced forked workengaging elements 35 between which are wall portions 36 which are spaced from the work sufficiently to permit the needle to pass bemay overlap and interflt with each other. These.

jaw members are normally held in clamping relation with work placed therebetween as by means of a loop spring 31 and they may be moved away from each other by means of a cam plate 40 slidably mounted on the under side of the carrier bar 33 and having inclined slots 4| engaging with suitable screws 42 in the jaw members 3|. As shown the cam member has a forward plate portion 44 which may be engaged by the rear lower end of an actuating lever 45 pivoted at 46 to the forward end of the carrier bar 33. This carrier bar 33 is hinged on a horizontal pintle 41 at its rear end so that the jaws 31 may be raised from the work table 25 and when so raised the upper end of the lever 45 impinges on the lower inclined face of a lever 59 causing the lever 45 to be rocked and the cam plate 40 pressed rearwardly so as to force the jaw members apart as is shown in Figure 8. The jaw members are arranged to be vibrated laterally opposite to the vibrations of the needle so as to increase the relative movement therebetween'so as to permit the needle to pass on opposite sides of work of a considerable width. To this end the lever 50 hereinbefore referred to has its forward slotted end pivotally connected as at 5| to a block member 52 which may be fixed as by screws 53 to the forward portion of the lever 15. This lever50 is shown as fulcrumed as at, 54 on the lower end of a sleeve 55 which houses at its lower end a plunger 56, the lower end of which is pressed against the. upper face of the work holder 39 to normally hold it in lowered operative position as by means of a spring 51 also housed within the sleeve 55. The tension of the spring 51 may be regulated by an adjusting screw 58 threaded into a sleeve 59 having threaded connection in the upper wall 60 of the sewing arm 3 and receiving the upper end of the sleeve 55.

The rear end of the lever 50 has pivotal connection to the work holder and in order that the g i work holder may be brought into proper rela-' tion to the sewing instrumentalities an adjustable connection is advisable. As shown best in Figures 9 and 10 this adjustable connection comprises a sleeve 6| having flattened sides 6| extending through a slot 62 (Figures 2 and 3) in the lever 50 and pivoted on an eccentric stud 63 the shank 63 of which is fixed in an opening through the bar 33 and secured at its lower end by a nut 64. On its upper end is fixed a nut 65. The shank 63 of the eccentric pivot stud 63 may have a hexagonal head portion as .66 by which it may be engaged by a wrench and turned thereby to adjust the angular position of the bar 33 with reference to the lever 50.

The work holder may be raised from the work which not only acts to open the jaws as preconnected to the work holder as at the pivot 46 by means of a chain 12. This rock shaft may be actuated against the 'pressure of a torsion spring 13 to raise the work holder by any suitable means such as a treadle (not shown) which 5 may be connected thereto through a link 14 (see Figures 7 and 8) connected to a lever 15 fixed to the rock shaft 10 at any convenient point.

Not only is the work holder designed to be moved laterally transverse to the direction of the longitudinal axis of the needle between successive sewing strokes of the needle, but it is also designed to be moved longitudinally or at substantially right angles to its vibratory motion in order to distribute the binding stitches along the work. To thisend the pivot 41 at the rear end of the work holder iscarried by a member pivoted on a vertical pivot screw 8! to a slide 83 carried by the base I. This slide 83 is guided between'spaced guides 84 and has 20 at its rear end a laterally extended portion 85 provided with a slot 86 extending therethrough. Adjustable in this slot is a pivot 81 which engages in a guide groove 88 in an arm 89 fixed to a vertical rock shaft 90 with which machines 25 of this type are .provided. This vertical rock shaft has also fixed thereto an arm 9| having at its rear end a cam follower roll 92 held in engagement with an edge cam 93 fixed to the vertical shaft 20 in the base I as usual with 30 such machines. As shown the cam 93 is so cut and arranged that at the start of a stitching operation the roll 92 is opposite the point a shown in Figure 2. At the initiation of the sewing operation the roll 92 is moved quickly 35- ually while stitching is continued until the point a is again reached when the machine stops.

The work which it is desired to bind together may be a pair of insulated wires shown at 1045 in Figures 11 and 12, which are grasped between the jaws of the work holder and are then wrapped with thread loops passed thereabout alternately in opposite directions and engaged with each other in chain stitch formation. 50 These chain stitches are caused to be wrapped progressively lengthwise of the wires as the cam roll 92 passes from the point a to the point D of the cam 93 as shown in Figure 11 at 94, whereupon the longitudinal motion of the work 55 holder is reversed and the loops of thread 940 are engaged with each other in close array, covering the loops first laid as shown in Figure 12 until at the end of the sewing operation the of the work when the-portion from c to d of cam l9'controls the position of the follower I4,

whereupon the thread is knotted in a manner well known in the art and the stitching operation is stopped as by any suitable stop motion, 65 not herein shown, but in the usual manner. After the machine is thus stopped the button clamp is raised as by a depression of the rod 14, the thread is broken at the knot and the work is released from the work holder by the opening 70 of the clamping jaws.

The second traverse of the work relative to the stitching instrumentalities which produces the outer layer of binding stitches shown in Figure 12 acts to firmly fix the starting thread end 75 aoaavsa which may be more or less loosely engaged in the first few stitches made, and in order that this last layer of loops shall be uniformly and tightly distributed provision is made in this machine for applying tension to the needle thread between the needle and the take-up while this layer of stitches is being made so that no loose loop of thread out of control of the sewing instrumentalities may at any time be formed be tween the needle and the work. By thus controlling the thread, the thread loops are laid evenly along the work in accordance with the movement of the work holder. It is not, however, desirable to employ this tension on the thread during the first formed stitches, since this would be liable to pull the thread end through the needle eye as during the first few stitches this end may be insecurely caught.

At I in Figures 7 and 8 is shown a usual form of take-up mounted on the needle bar and fro-m this, the thread as 890 passes downward through the tension l92 to the eye 7 of the needle. As shown best in Figures 5 and 15 this tension may comprise a bar fixed as at 98 as by screws to the forward face of the sewing head A and having spring pressed against its forward face an element 97] which may be of sheet material having opposite edges flanged overes at 98 (see Figure 16) to engage opposite sides of the bar 95. At 99 may be placed notches in these flanges to form a thread guide. This element 9? may be pressed against the forward face of the bar 95 and for this purpose there is shown a screw Hi9 extending through the element 9? and threaded into the bar 95 and surrounded by a coil spring IM. For the purpose of adjustment this screw I99 is shown as positioned within an opening I02 through the front face of the head 4 so that it may be accessible to a screwdriver for adjusting the extent of its engagement in the bar 95 and thus the pressure of the spring WE on the element (H.

For the purpose of releasing the tension during the first few stitches until the starting thread end is sufficiently secured the following means may be provided. Fixed as by a screw I to the rear face of the bar 95 is a cam element I06 having an inclined cam face I01 and at its free end a forwardly extending portion I98 projecting through an opening through the bar 95 and into engagement with the rear face of the tension element 91. This member I06 may be formed of sheet material and the portion I08 thereof may be formed by cutting and striking forwardly a portion thereof. By springing this cam member forwardly, it is evident that the element 91 will be pressed away from the bar 95, thus relieving the tension on the thread. This may be done by means of an arm H9 shown best in Figures 13, 15 and 16 fixed to a rock shaft III journaled in the upper portion of the arm 3 and having at its rear end a cam arm I I2 which may be engaged at the beginning of the stitching operation by a cam projection. I I3 on the top face of the cam I9. The rock shaft III is normally held in such angular position that the arm H2 is depressed and the arm I I0 retracted from engagement with the tension release member I06 as by means of a coil torsion spring H4 shown in Figure 13. When the stitching cycle is about to stop the cam projection H3 rides beneath the arm H2, rocking this'arm and moving the arm H9 over into tension-releasing position shown in Figure 15.

On the start of a succeeding sewing operation the tension is held released until the projection H3 rides from under the arm IIZ, whereupon the tension is resumed. The free end of the tension element 91 is preferably bent forwardly as at 829 to facilitate placing the thread in position between it and the bar 95. This location of the thread tension between the needle and the take-up and the construction of this tension are not claimed per se herein but form subject matter of a divisional application Serial No. 591,254, filed February 6, 1932, for Chain stitch sewing machines.

It is also desirable to grasp the starting end of the thread until after the stitching operation has been well initiated since where the threads are wrapped about material, as in the present machine, there is little frictional engagement of the starting end to prevent it from being drawn through the needle eye which would prevent stitching. In order to hold the thread end to prevent it from paying back through the needle eye at the start of the machine operation it may be grasped by a tension device shown at 639. As shown this comprises a resilient hook member in which the thread end may be caught carried at the lower end of a lever iii, the upper end of which is fixed to the rock shaft E9. The parts are so positioned that when the work holder is allowed to descend toward sewing position on the work table, the hook H3!) is caused to move across the needle path from the position shown in Figure 8 to that shown in Figure 7, engaging the thread end I95 and drawing it laterally away from the needle path into the position shown in Figure 7, this thread end being drawn into the bend of the hook H9 and there held with sufficient firmness so that it is not drawn back through the needle eye during the first stitch and is held for a sufficient time to insure correct formation of the first stitch. It then slips out from the tension device M9 and the stitching proceeds in the usual manner.

In Figures 13, 17 and 18 is shown a modified construction of work holder in which in place of the pivoted jaws two plates I40 and MI are employed, each of these plates having a notch I42 in its upper edge, the notches being oppositely disposed to receive the work therein. These plates are shown as fixed in spaced relation to a suitable carrier plate I45 which may be fixed to the bar 33, as shown in Figure 13, in place of the jaw members 3|. One of these plate members as I4I, this being the one at which the start of the binding operation on the work takes place, is provided with spaced wall portions I43 extending toward the opposite notched plate I40 to define side walls spaced from the work on opposite sides a sufficient distance to permit the needle to pass between these walls and the work but sufficiently close to the work to prevent the lateral escape of the starting end of the needle thread. By this means this starting end is held sufliciently close to the work to insure its being bound in by the succeedingly placed loops of thread so that it does not show in the finished work. These elements I43 in this respect have a similar function to the wall portions 36 of the jaw members 3| in the form of work holder previously described.

While the various novel features of this invention have been described with reference to a machine for binding wire or similar strand material. it is evident that the same mechanism could be used for binding other materials such as fabric as in the case of binding tea bags or 75 other types of machines.

the like, and also that several of the features of invention might be employed to advantage in This description, therefore, should be taken as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims.

I claim: v

1. A sewing machine comprising sewing 1nstrumentalities, work holding means, and means for vibrating certain of said sewing instrumentalities and for vibrating saidwork holding means oppositely to the direction of and in time with the vibration of said certain instrumentalities thereby to increase the relative movement therebetween.

2. A sewing machine comprising sewing instrumentalities including a needle, a work holder, means for vibrating said needle laterally between successive sewing strokes and means actuated on the lateral vibration of the needle to vibrate the work holder in the opposite direction relative to and in time with the lateral vibration of said needle whereby the relative lateral motion between the needle and work holder is increased.

3. A sewing machine comprising sewing instrumentalities including a needle, a work holder movable laterally of said needle, means for vibrating said needle laterally between sewing strokes, a lever, and connections from said lever on one side of its fulcrum to said needlevibrating means and on the other side of its fulcrum to said work holder.

4. A sewing machine comprising sewing instrumentalities including a needle, a work holder movable laterally of said needle, means for vibrating said needle laterally between sewing strokes, a lever, and connections from said lever on one side of its fulcrum to said needle-vibrating means and on the other side of its fulcrum to said work holder, certain of said connections including adjustable parts whereby the relationship between said needle and work holder may be adjusted.

5. A sewing machine comprising sewing instrumentalities including a needle, a work holder movable laterally of said needle, means for vibrating said needle laterally between sewing strokes, a lever, and connections from said lever on one side of its fulcrum to said needle-vibrating means and on the other side; of its fulcrum tov said work holder, the connections to said work holder including an eccentric pivot angularly adjustable 13 bring said work holder into desired relation to said needle.

6. In a machine of the class described, sewing instrumentalities including a take-up and a needle having an eye, a work holder, means for relatively moving said instrumentalities and work holder transverse to the direction of the longitudinal axis of the needle to cause stitches to be passed around work carried by said holder alternately in opposite directions, means for causing relative motion between said holder and instrumentalities at right angles to said transverse motion first in one direction and then in the opposite direction to cause the first stitches laid to be distributed along the work and then overlaid by other stitches formed thereafter, and means for applying tension to the sewing thread between the needle and take-up while said overlying stitches are being laid to cause an even distribution of said overlying stitches.

relatively moving said instrumentalities and work holder transverse to the direction of the 5 longitudinal axis of the needle to cause stitches to be passed around work carried by said holder alternately in opposite directions, means for causing relative motion between said holder and instrumentalities at right angles to said transverse motion first in one direction and then in the opposite direction to cause the first stitches laid to be distributed along the work and then overlaid by other stitches formed thereafter, means for applying tension to the sewing thread between the needle and take-up while said overlying stitches are being laid to cause an even distribution of said overlying stitches, and means for rendering said tension-applying means inoperative while certain of said first stitches are being laid. v

8. In a sewing machine, the combination with a vertically reciprocatory needle, of a workholder comprising spaced pairs of oppositely disposed interfitting jaws movable horizontally to- 5 ward and away from each other into and out of interfitting relation for engaging work therebetween, each of said jaws comprising a forked member the prongs of which are ofiset vertically from one-another and oppositely inclined to the horizontal.

9. In a sewing machine, the combination with a vertically reoiprocatory needle, of a workholder comprising a pair of opposed interfitting jaws movable horizontally toward and away from each other for engaging work therebetween, each of said jaws comprising a fork the prongs of which are inclined in opposite directions in spaced vertical planes.

10. In a sewing machine, the combination 4 with a vertically reciprocatory needle, of a workholder comprising a pair of opposed interfitting jaws movable horizontally toward and away from each other for engaging work therebetween, each of said jaws comprising a fork the prongs of which are inclined in opposite directions in spaced ver: tical planes, the prongs of eachfork being each coplanar vertically with and parallel to a respective prong of the opposed fork.

11. A work-holder comprising a pair of spaced plates having opposed notches open transversely through said plates and in which notches material to be wrapped may be placed, one of said plates having spaced portions projecting toward the other of said plates and presenting side walls spaced apart a distance sufficiently greater than the width of said notches to permit the passage of a sewing needle between the said walls and the work engaged in said notches.

12. In a sewing machine, the combination with a vertically reciprocatory needle, of a workholder comprising a pair of cooperating interfitting jaws movable horizontally in a plane from and toward each other for clamping work therebetween, each jaw having a pair of hori- (35 zontally spaced work engaging portions, the work-engaging portions of both jaws being substantially opposite to each other, said workengaging portions being forked, the prongs of each fork being oppositely inclined to said plane and offset vertically from each other along the sides of the work.

MICHAEL McCANN. 

